Johnny Football Gave The Redskins The Middle Finger? Johnny Football Gave the Redskins The Middle Finger.

Al Weaver 11:28 PM 08/18/2014

Welp, Johnny Football made one hell of an impression on The League Monday night.

A struggling Manziel took his frustration out on the Washington Redskins’ bench, flipping them the bird following a 2nd down incompletion with 2:28 left in the third quarter.

Manziel, the former Heisman winner at Texas A&M and ultimate bro, completed only 7 of 16 passes for just 65 yards and a touchdown. He was also sacked three times, and can (probably) expect his first fine as an NFLer this week.

On the bright side for Johnny Football, there’s nowhere to go but up, right?

Thankfully (for his sake), he didn’t flash the ole double bird. Thankfully for everyone’s sake, Marcus Hall did once upon a time in glorious fashion.

Cleveland ultimately lost to the Redskins, 24-23.

Manziel takes the field next on Saturday night vs. St. Louis in Cleveland.

Johnny Manziel’s finger flip, though, is about to get him in hot water with the NFL.

Adding fuel to the lingering questions about his maturity, Manziel was caught flipping his middle finger to the Redskins’ bench in the third quarter of a 24-23 preseason loss to Washington at FedEx Field.

Manziel’s obscene gesture on national TV (caught in high definition by ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” cameras) is likely to earn him a hefty fine from the league and overshadowed everything he did as a player in his competition with incumbent Brian Hoyer.

Manziel described it as a “lapse of judgment” afterward, but said it was in response to a steady barrage of verbal abuse from the Redskins and their fans.

“I should’ve been smarter,” Manziel said. “It was a ‘Monday Night Football’ game, and the cameras were probably solidly on me. So I just need to be smarter about that.

“With me, since my name has grown bigger, [the verbal abuse] just continues to go on. I know it’s there, and it’s present every game. I just need to let it slide off my back and go to the next game.”

Manziel’s inability to let it slide left him on the bad side of Browns coach Mike Pettine, who curtly said after the game the incident “does not sit well” with him and he would address it with his headline-grabbing rookie.

“It’s disappointing,” Pettine said. “You have to be able to maintain your poise, especially if you’re the quarterback.”

Pettine was no less pleased by the state of his quarterback competition. That duel looked more like a pillow fight for most of the first three quarters Monday, leaving Pettine with a choice that could just as easily be called a dilemma.

Manziel and Hoyer were both awful — and that’s putting it nicely — against Washington’s first- and second-team defense in a display that seemingly dashed the hopes of anyone pulling for Johnny Football to start Week 1 in Pittsburgh.

A former Jets defensive coordinator under Rex Ryan, Pettine said repeatedly he planned to announce his quarterback choice for the regular season by Tuesday of this week.

That plan now appears to be in shambles.

“All the options are on the table,” Pettine said when asked if he might wait another week to decide.

Manziel finally did something positive on his fourth and final possession, marching the Browns 68 yards for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter that came on an 8-yard shovel pass to running back Dion Lewis.

It was the first offensive touchdown by a Cleveland quarterback in 16 possessions so far this preseason. But it also came against a mix of the Redskins’ third- and fourth-team defense, so its worth to Pettine for evaluation purposes was nil.

Manziel finished 7-for-16 for 65 yards, but that line was deceiving. He was just 4-for-11 for 38 yards before the final possession.

The touchdown drive also featured Manziel’s middle-finger salute to the Washington bench, which came after he apparently had his fill of the

Washington defensive end Brian Orakpo twice flashed Manziel’s famous “money” sign in the first half, most notably after Manziel was sacked on his first drive by Ryan Kerrigan.

Manziel’s flip (the NFL fine for that is $11,025) and the late touchdown at least made his evening somewhat interesting, unlike Hoyer’s.

Hoyer didn’t complete his first pass until his fourth drive — and the Browns’ sixth — and then promptly watched fourth-string tight end MarQueis Gray fumble it away with 2:05 left in the first half.

Hoyer finished 2-for-6 for 16 yards.a line that probably won’t keep the Steelers awake at night in fear of the season opener.

“It probably couldn’t have been any worse,” Hoyer said of his performance. “It’s disappointing and embarrassing. We started off poorly, and it really never changed after that.”

As a formerly rabid, (now casual), Browns fan, I hated this pick from the start. Manziel was a terrific COLLEGE QB who's skill set won't fit in the pros. Manziel is Tim Tebow, minus the class, character, and discipline.

Manziel will be a bust.

The Browns are on pace for another 5 win season. They should just change their name to the Cleveland 5-11's.

The NFL fined the Browns rookie quarterback $12,000 on Friday for flipping his middle finger at Washington's sideline, a person familiar with the penalty told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the ruling has not been made public.

Manziel said he was reacting to incessant taunting by the Redskins during Monday night's nationally televised game when he made the gesture while running back to Cleveland's huddle.

"I had words exchanged with me throughout the entirety of the game, every game, week after week," Manziel said. "I should have been smarter. It was a Monday Night Football game and the cameras were probably solidly on me, and I need to be smarter about that."

Manziel has never shied away from other gestures on the field, notably the finger-rubbing "money" sign he made famous while winning the Heisman Trophy at Texas A&M.

Manziel expects the trash talk to keep heading his way.

"Since my name has grown bigger and people have known who I am, it just continues to go as the games continue to go on," he said following Cleveland's 24-23 loss to the Redskins. "I don't know if there is a single level of severity each game, but I know it's there and it's present every game. I just need to let it slide off my back and go to the next play.

"I feel like I did a good job of holding my composure throughout the night and you have a lapse of judgment and slip up."

His finger flipping didn't help his chances of winning Cleveland's starting job, which went to veteran Brian Hoyer.

Browns coach Mike Pettine felt Manziel should have known better than to react to Washington's insults. He wants his high-profile rookie — and Cleveland's other players — to make mature decisions on and off the field. Pettine said the 21-year-old's behavior factored into the team's decision in naming a starter.

"We talk about 'Play like a Brown.' We want our guys to act like a Brown," Pettine said. "We want to be a first-class organization. We have hundreds, thousands of kids come to our training camp practices, and look up to our players. That type of behavior is unacceptable. It's something that's part of football that you have to maintain your poise and your composure, especially at that position, and he should know better than anyone that all eyes are on him."

I like the kid's enthusiasm and ability to play above his ability level.

We could all accomplish a lot more in life if we applied ourselves similarly and I like that.

Flipping off the Redskins didn't hurt...

He's a smart-aleck. He surely hasn't played "above his ability level" this training camp. Somebody's going to take his head off before the season's over, if he even gets to play. This ain't college anymore, Johnny-boy.